As a TV expert and an all-around appreciator of picture quality, it pains a part of me to make this recommendation. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my decade-plus of covering the TV industry, it’s that ultra-cheap TVs fill a niche — especially around the holidays.
That’s why I’m temporarily setting aside my nitpicky nature and letting you know that there’s a 50-inch Vizio 4K TV for $128 at Walmart right now. That’s right: It’s a 50-inch TV for roughly the cost of a nice pair of sunglasses or a few trips to the gas station.
Look, I’ll be honest here: I think there are slightly pricier TVs that will likely last longer than this Vizio and look much better in the process, and I’ll definitely mention them below. That said, I understand the appeal of a TV that has a screen, a handful of smart features and a sub-$150 price tag. To that end, here’s everything I can tell you about this model (which I guess is called the V4K50S-08).
First off, I’ve decided that I do not enjoy writing V4K50S-08, so from here on out, let’s just call it “the Vizio TV.”
The Vizio TV is a barebones, 4K LED TV that supports a bunch of HDR formats, for some reason. I say “for some reason” because, despite having never seen it in my life, I can tell you that there’s no way that the Vizio TV gets bright or colorful enough for HDR to be as impactful as it can (and ought to) be.
Essentially, as a bottom-of-the-barrel set with low-end display hardware, the Vizio TV’s HDR support may as well be in name only. Let’s put it this way: For $128, I’m more excited by the fact that this TV sports a 4K display than I am to have Dolby Vision or HDR10 support. At 50 inches, I would notice the benefits of 4K resolution, but with a display this cheap, I wouldn’t notice the benefits of HDR.
The Vizio TV could be OK you’re just furnishing a guest room or a dorm with something that can stream Netflix.
This could be OK, however, if you’re just furnishing a guest room or a dorm with something that can stream Netflix. The Vizio TV does offer Netflix — and most of the other popular streaming apps, too. (You might want to double-check that your favorite apps are supported before you buy, though.)
I promised that I’d share a recommendation for a TV I’d buy instead of this one, so here goes: Right now, the 55-inch TCL QM5K is just $329 at Best Buy. It’s an early Black Friday TV deal that just went live this morning, and I think it’s worth a look.
Yes, the QM5K is $200 more than the Vizio TV at the 55-inch size point. That’s a lot of money, so I’d understand it if you just want to save as much as possible on the Vizio TV. But if you’re willing to jump up to $329, you’ll be buying yourself a much better-looking TV that, frankly, might last longer than the Vizio TV, considering the difference in hardware.
The QM5K’s Mini-LED backlighting is about as rudimentary as Mini-LED backlighting gets, but trust me: it’s much better than the display you’re getting with the Vizio TV.
As we inch closer to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, TVs like the $128 Vizio TV might prove popular. I went to Taco Bell a few weeks ago and somehow walked away spending $22 — let’s just say I’m starting to understand the appeal of TVs like the Vizio TV.
